Internet and Technology Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Web and Technology - Research Paper Example In that capacity, this paper will quickly talk about the utilitarian and social advantages of the Internet, and afterward proceed onward to clarifying its social weaknesses. At long last, this paper plans to strengthen its postulation that while the Internet has its positive social advantages, it ought not be supplanted with genuine, eye to eye social associations. Advantages of the Internet The essential preferences of the Internet are established in its tendency as a computerized correspondence medium. In such manner, it tends to be asserted that the regular advantages of the Internet might be assembled either as useful or social. There are three regular utilitarian advantages of the Internet. Right off the bat, the Internet takes into consideration a simpler and increasingly agreeable access to an immense number of data second (Brey 4). For instance, through the nearness of different web crawlers like Google and Yahoo! Search, individuals from everywhere throughout the globe can g et to appropriate data about any subject in under a second. This aides in improving people’s psychological abilities. Furthermore, The Internet causes it feasible for individuals to productively to and successfully move data (Brey 4). For instance, with the expanding notoriety of blog locales and person to person communication destinations, nearly anybody can make or spread online substance to their contacts or supporters. Such keeps up elevated level of mindfulness and enthusiasm on the most squeezing cultural issues. Finally, the Internet offices different correspondence groups among people from all pieces of the globe. Instances of these arrangements incorporate balanced, one-to-many, and many-to-numerous correspondence. Through this, opportunity of articulation is ensured and rehearsed by allowing each client to bestow their bits of knowledge on the regular cultural happenings. Then again, there are four normal social advantages of the Internet. Initially, it creates and keep up great social relations. This normally happens when the Internet is utilized as an instrument of correspondence for the individuals who wish to keep up their closeness with their friends and family. For instance, Skype is spans correspondence hole by guaranteeing ongoing correspondence. Besides, the Internet contributes in the network development and social association by joining individuals with same interests and likes. For instance, there are different sites that take into account ‘passion groups’ like artists, painters, and so forth. In that capacity, it regularly gives a new way to deal with people to fabricate and improve social developments. Thirdly, the Internet likewise aids one’s character arrangement and mental improvement by helping them ‘be what they truly are’. In this sense, Internet’s ability to take into account obscurity gives more opportunity to the clients. In conclusion, the Internet makes ready for a superior compr ehension of one’s culture, yet of the way of life of others, as well. In such manner, through the tremendous data that are available in the Internet, anybody can look about history and craftsmanship, permitting one to acknowledge different social images and standards. Weaknesses of the Internet The Internet likewise has a lot of contrary impacts to individuals and social orders on the loose. Clearly, contingent upon the goal of its clients, the Internet might be utilized to decimate one’s notoriety and poise. The essential impediment happens when online collaboration is being supplanted with unmistakable, eye to eye connections. For instance, when an individual chooses to connect more in online correspondence as opposed to genuine correspondence, he will gradually create

Farmers Union Iced Coffee, Advertisement Free Essays

Ranchers Union Iced Coffee was propelled in 1977 by a gathering of dairy ranchers who were making another formula for the Royal Adelaide appear. The milk refreshment is Australia’s biggest selling seasoned milk and every year Australians devour more than 27 million liters of the drink every year. There are a couple of thoughts and issues that are brought up in the content that I can call attention to. We will compose a custom exposition test on Ranchers Union Iced Coffee, Advertisement or on the other hand any comparable subject just for you Request Now I feel that having a promotion about the universes history and issues while indicating typical consistently Australians assuming out the jobs and afterward ready to conceal the genuine message is an electrifying notice. The general thought in any promotion is to attempt to expand the deal and prevalence of an item. I have most likely observed the Farmers Union promotion a thousand times and never truly gave a lot of consideration to it actually not so much realizing what they were rambling about, yet until I had really enjoyed an opportunity to reprieve it down and truly think about it did I comprehend and give acknowledgment for how sharp it was. I had an encounter where I was in a shop with a mate who was hoping to purchase a beverage, while taking a gander at his alternatives I brought up a Farmers Union Iced Coffee and disclosed to him how I at long last made sense of what they were discussing on the TV advertisement and disclosed everything out to him. At the point when I disclosed to him every single detail he thought of the choice to get one, which at that point happened to me that the promotion was fruitful on the grounds that when I saw the item it reminded me about how great the advertisement was which at that point prompted me telling my companion who purchased the item. I do accept that the advertisement has a negative side to it. A portion of the scenes in the ad could be hostile to certain watchers, for instance, the Apollo 1 debacle wherein every one of the three of the group on board were slaughtered in the fire, the women's activist push during the 1970s where a man is seen consuming a bra rather getting into the sport of cricket which is on the TV. I feel that it was a bet to put these in the promotion, they are just minor however could have gotten a reasonable piece of contention towards the past and times where individuals might not want to have been reminded. Having said that everybody will have their own translation about the promotion and how it is depicted. The class of this commercial would as I would see it be parody, predominantly because of the way that the manner in which the promotion is created and I accept that the laid back culture of Australians the vast majority could perhaps have a snicker. I get this on account of the storytellers voice, it nearly draws out the manner by which we may have acted during those occasions, similar to the underarm episode during the 1980s, I figure the general activity currently would be something along the lines of â€Å"What he did was dumb, yet take a gander at how we as a whole reacted† obviously in the event that I had survived the specific time that is the manner by which I would be taking a gander at it now. I believe that they could most likely pull off more than they could in light of the fact that the way of life in Australia is viewed as a well disposed and laid back spot, sure occasions are awful yet here we get over them and glance back at them while having a snicker. There is a higher portrayal of guys all through the entire of the advertisement. There are just two females appeared, one being a minor character who doesn’t get a lot of consideration paid to her and another who speaks to Cathy in 2000. Additionally neither of the females is drinking the refreshment, in each clasp where somebody is drinking the Iced Coffee it is consistently a male which could give the generalization that normally just guys expend the item since they turn out to be in the hard conditions perspiring under the sun. I don’t believe that it would create quite a bit of a scene or would anybody truly acknowledge it, however it’s something I got while observing intently. The predominant perusing when somebody firsts sees this promotion I think would be simply obliging what the storyteller is stating and conceivably being befuddled at what is happening, yet at the same time focusing on ensure they tune in next time to the notice to have the option to completely get it. It would likewise presumably be simpler for somebody that would have survived these occasions at which the occasions all happened or have found out about them through instruction or enthusiasm for territories, for example, game or travel to space so as to get the hidden implications. The Alternative perusing would get the advertisement for its genuine foundations implications which are camouflaged through typical looking individuals, however speaking to overall issues. Somebody would need to be pretty turned on all through the adverts between their projects to get it. I don't figure somebody could have made sense of every occasion the first occasion when they saw the promotion, it would most likely take somebody a couple of times to see the advertisement at that point work it hard and fast. The utilization of intertextuality in the ad of Farmers Union shows Australian tradesmen and dedicated sweat-soaked men drinking it while they are working. It would give the message that this kind of refreshment is for large, solid and intense men and isn't for the happy. It likewise shows that on the off chance that you are in a terrible circumstance, the best Iced Coffee in Australia will get you through it and it as of now has through a portion of the great and awful occasions appeared all through the ad. Instructions to refer to Farmers Union Iced Coffee, Advertisement, Papers

Bostons 3rd of July

Boston’s 3rd of July So my schedule at work is pretty sweet. I work slightly long days all week and then get off early on Friday. That changed a bit this week because of our favorite pyrotechnic holiday, Independence Day. Hasbro, being the awesome company they are, decided to pay all of the interns and temps for the holiday, meaning that as I sit here typing this entry Im earning money not just for blogging but also for building toys (only one of which Im actually doing). But, thats not the best part, since we have today off they moved our half day to Thursday. This means I got back to campus much earlier than normal letting me have a little evening-time fun. A year ago I read Matt McGanns entry about some super-special secret Boston Pops concert the night before the 4th and I figured the 3rd of July was as good a time as any to have my first Boston Pops experience. I, unfortunately, did not take my camera, so youll have to rely solely on my beautiful prose and various other forms of media. I left the dorm at 5:30 PM for a concert I was told started at 7:00 PM. I strapped on my skates, threw my shoes in my backpack, and skated down to the Longfellow bridge, crossed it, and headed to the Hatch Shell. This is when I began my experience with July 3rd/4th security. I was skating happily down the sidewalk towards the Hatch Shell when I noticed the sidewalk was cordoned off and guarded by police, redirecting anybody without a pass to a dirt trail. I dont skate on dirt, it trashes bearings, so I de-skated, threw them into my backpack, and continued my trek on foot. Security 1 Snively 0. I made it to the Hatch Shell and instantly thought Oh right Matt, sure nobody knows about it! because, even though it was an hour before anything was supposed to start, there were people EVERYWHERE! Thousands of people. The entire grassy area was also blocked off by a metal fence. Well, a metal fence, the national guard, police officers, and private security guards. I walked around the circumference of the gate before coming upon what very well could have been the longest line ever. I got in it. It slowly inched towards the grassy area as people had their bags checked for dangerous things (silverware be ing the most common offender). I was tipped off that there was a much shorter line to my left so I wandered over and sure enough, a line with 2 people in it (as opposed to several hundred, as was the case in my current line). I wandered up and walked right up to the baggage check lady. We chatted in a friendly manner, I explained that I was a harmless guy and didnt have anything dangerous or illegal and she said reassuring things like Im sure youre fine and I cant imagine you having anything like that but that was all until she opened the back of my backpack. Thats when she saw my skates. Oooooh, you cant bring these in. What? Skates, skates arent allowed, you cant bring these in. But Im not wearing them. Look, its all grass in there, how could I skate on grass with three thousand people around, theyre in my backpack! Nope, Im sorry, you cant get in. Wonderful. Security 2, Snively 0. I started looking for a place to stash my skates but there wasnt anywhere around that seemed safe, not to mention that right as I left my hidden secret line, the rest of the people discovered it and a hundred people came over and made it not so short. I was officially sealed out of the grassy area. I made the best of my situation and found a wall on a walkway that, when sat upon, provided an excellent view of the stage. That lasted, oh, 10 minutes, before a cop came and told everybody to leave because it couldnt support the weight of a lot of people. Moved again, excellent. Security 3, Snively 0. I proceeded to just walk up to the perimeter gate and stand there. It was 6:15 PM. It was then that I heard somebody mention that the show started at 8:30 PM, something I was ill equipped to hear. I looked at my watch. I was going to have to stand by this fence for another two hours and fifteen minutes, a really long time. I made the best of it though, chatting with some nice older guy who was a Boston Pops 4th of July veteran and some exchange student from Europe, both of whom were very nice. At around 7 oclock the loudspeakers came on. Attention. A weather front is approaching the esplanade and will hit us at approximately 7:15 PM. We expect heavy rain, wind, and severe thunderstorms. If you would like to leave and return we will be taking shelter in the tunnel near the esplanade. Nice. Clearly a plot by security trying to get me away from the Boston Pops, but YOU WILL NOT WIN COPPERS! NEVER! The only way I could think of exploiting this situation was to go buy a beverage from one of the vendors since there were no more lines (people are easily frightened, I felt like a salmon swimming upstream as I fought against the throngs of escaping Americans). Unfortunately for me I only had plastic for $$$ and nobody took debit. I set out in search of an ATM as the sky got darker and darker, the wind got stronger and stronger, and the people got more and more frantic. As I wandered I heard somebody yell Snively! I turned and sure enough, Matt McGann. Somehow, out of thousands of people, wed run into each other. Well, Matt McGann with family and friends, more prepared for the storm than I. Armed with umbrellas and having obviously seen 300 they were crouched and had created a shield against the rain and wind. I ducked behind and chatted with Matt about such interesting s ubjects as Ring Committee and our buddy Ben. Also, I would like to point out that Matt McGann uses a bright pink umbrella. He claims that it belongs to his wife but Im pretty sure its his, judging by how fervently he denied ownership. We were quickly concerned with other matters as the rain finally hit, and by hit I mean WOOOOOOOOOOSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHH HOOOOOOWWWWWLLLLLLLLLL SSSSPPPPPPLLLLLOOOOOOOOOSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!! We ducked, umbrellas strained, and we weathered the storm. I still hadnt found an ATM, but since Matt is awesome he loaned me a twenty so I went off and bought some fried dough and a lemonade. I returned to my spot at the fence and settled in to wait for the show. Its 8:00 PM at this point. The lighting tests began, there were sound checks, and people were milling about the stage. I noticed a green drum set on stage and found it strange that the Pops would need a set. Then this announcement: Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for being patient. Youve weathered the storm and, while youre waiting, we have some folks that would like to thank you for coming by playing a song for you. Please welcome to the stage, Rascal Flatts! *cue audience hysteria* Im not a huge western fan and about the only experience I have with the Rascal Flatts is an ex-girlfriend obsessing over Life is a Highway, but it was definitely a good time. They only played one song for us but everybody loved it. Then, fifteen minutes later, the Pops took the stage and launched into the national anthem. This is when I realized that the Pops were famous for a reason. They. Are. Good. I like to think that I have an ear for a bands sound since I was so involved in band in high school (Charles A. Sprague High School, what now, we won a Grammy my senior year!) The Pops are good. Very very good. After the national anthem the director, Keith Lockhart, came up and introduced their first set, A Tribute to Leonard Bernstein. Excellent, Bernstein is awesome! I was expecting some popular Bernstein songs arranged into some mashup featuring just the main themes, but was pleasantly surprised by what they played. They played two entire songs, the first of which was Overture to Candide. I have a small obsession with this song, I played it in High School and everybody LOVED it. Hearing the Boston Pops play it was amazing, to say the least. I found a YouTube video of them playing it 2 years ago, the sound isnt great but Ive also included a link to an mp3 thats much better (although not performed by the Pops). Click for full mp3 After Candide they played Mambo from Westside Story, another excellent choice and a crowd pleaser. Lockhart announced that since Boston was obsessed with sports, the Boston Pops have decided to piece together a compilation devoted entirely to baseball. The set began with a song called National Game by our favorite cheesy music writer John Philip Sousa. Next was a really nice compilation from Field of Dreams and The Natural. The Natural has great music, just listen: The Natural Then we listened to Take me out to the ball game about three different times, all different arrangements, and some with vocals. By the end of that we were all like Please, please, no more take me out to the ball game, weve had enough! Luckily, following the baseball song overload, was a reading of Casey at the Bat, set to music. I was stunned at how many people around me had never heard this poem! If you havent, you need to get smart and culture yourself really quickly because Ill laugh at you if you dont. Read Casey at the Bat I really enjoyed this part of the performance, it was an unexpected treat. Next was a transition away from baseball, every Bostonians favorite song by every Bostonians favorite band, Shipping up to Boston by the Dropkick Murphys, performed by the Boston Pops. Different, but very enjoyable, another crowd pleaser. Next, the classic 4th of July number, the 1812 Overture, complete with cannon fire synced to the music. Another surprise was that a lot of people dont realize just how long this song is and that the recognizable part is just in the last couple of minutes. Check it out for yourself: 1812 Overture WMA The cannon fire, although kind of cheesy, was AWESOME! Seriously, any music with cannons as instruments is a winner in my book. There was a short intermission as the Rascal Flatts took the stage again and we were introduced to Craig Ferguson, a late night comedian who is apparently quite popular. At MIT we dont really watch TV (dont worry, its not as bad as it sounds, trust me) so I hadnt heard of this guy but everybody else seemed really excited. I noticed though, as he was speaking, that he kept saying that it was July 4th and that there would be fireworks soon. Ooooooh, practice! Thats when we heard this very official voice saying Welcome back to the 35th annual Boston Pops fireworks spectacular, sponsored by Liberty Mutual. And now, Craig Ferguson! The official dry run had begun, complete with commercial breaks and live talent. Rascal Flatts struck their first chord and the audience went NUTS! This time I actually knew what was happening, they were playing Life is a Highway and the audience was eating it up. Click for MP3 Next was another Rascal Flatts song, Every Day, which Id never heard but was enjoyable nonetheless. Then came the obligatory patriotic song medley, featuring: My Country tis of Thee America the Beautiful Yankee Doodle This Land is Your Land Grand Old Flag God Bless America All came with lyrics courtesy of the Jumbotron. The finale was Stars and Stripes Forever and a huge explosion of confetti from air cannons all throughout the audience. It was all very patriotic and lighthearted, a great conclusion to the evening. People, dressed all in red, white, and blue, slowly filtered away. The real excitement is tonight in just three short hours. I wont be braving the crowd tonight, Im going to watch the fireworks with some friends over here on campus. We should be able to hear the music too, we could hear the sound checks this morning thanks to the dozens of huge speakers scattered on both sides of the river, projecting music into both Boston and Cambridge. It should be a good night, Ill try to get some footage of fireworks to post!

Renewable Energy Sources - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 992 Downloads: 8 Grade: Mark default Date added: 2017/11/10 Category Ecology Essay Level High school Tags: Renewable Energy Essay Did you like this example? The 20th century was without doubt the age of fossil fuels—oil, in particular. Fossils had been excavated almost throughout the entire history of humanity, but it is the 20th century which brought the scales of the excavation to the limit. Gasoline for vehicles, aircraft, and vessels, fuel for space flights and war machines, heating systems—all this and much more works on fossil fuel, even in 2017. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Renewable Energy Sources" essay for you Create order However, since the first studies proving that the utilization of fossil fuels makes a huge part of the global warming process, there have been talks about not only regulating its usage, but also about seeking for alternatives to oil, gas, and other sources of energy popular nowadays. Such alternatives are usually called with a generalized term â€Å"renewable sources of energy,† meaning that unlike fossil fuels (which are gradually depleting, and are expected to become exhausted completely by the end of the current century) these new sources will constantly replenish themselves. So, what exactly are renewable sources of energy? There are two terms in regard to the subject which are regularly used nowadays: alternative energy, and renewable energy. The former is a more generalized term, used to describe any energy source that is different from traditional fossil fuels, and which cause little-to-no negative impact on the environment. In its turn, the term â€Å"renewable energy† refers to energy generated with the help of the forces of nature: sun, water, wind, biomass, the inner heat of the Earth (geothermal energy), and so on (PennState Extension). Renewable energy is based not on depletable material, but rather on natural processes that cannot readily disappear if made use of. For example, solar energy is something everyone around the globe has access to; the Sun shines for billion of years with almost the same stability, and it is unlikely that generating energy from its heat and light can do any harm to the star itself. The same goes for windmills, watermills, and so on: instead of working on matt er, alternative sources of energy make use of how the wind blows, or how the water flows, and thus cause much less harm to the environment, and do not exhaust natural resources. Currently, there are several sources from which scientists have learned to accumulate energy: solar energy, hydropower, wind energy, geothermal energy, and bioenergy. Solar energy is created by the light and temperature produced by the Sun. Respectively, there are two types of solar energy: photovoltaic and thermal. The former implies producing electricity from sunlight, using photovoltaic elements, or cells. These cells are combined in large groups, known as solar panels, and put on rooftops, or other surfaces which are constantly being exposed to sunlight. Another way of capturing sunlight in order to produce energy involves using heliostats—huge mirrors which reflect and concentrate sunlight, converting it into thermal energy. Heat energy can be later converted into electricity as well (due to steam generation, which then drives steam machines), or can be used in industries that currently utilize gas and other fossils in order to produce heat. The energy outcome from every solar power station is huge, but there are other alternative sources of energy as well. For example, hydropower: free-falling water drives special turbines, which rotate and generate electricity; wind energy is gained in an approximately similar way, except that electric turbines are driven by wind, not water. A more advanced source is ocean energy: by exploiting temperature differences between ocean surfaces and depths, it is possible to produce a vast amount of energy. Tides and waves can serve as secure energy sources as well. Geothermal energy is gained by utilizing the heat of the Earth’s core; finally, bioenergy is gained from processing organic matter: agricultural and forestry products, biological waste, compost, garbage, and other similar substances can be converted into thermal and electric energy (Australian Renewable Energy Agency). Renewable energy is effective in many ways: economically, ecologically, politically, and so on. It is no surprise that many countries around the world have started attempting to substitute or diversify their energy with the help of alternative energy sources. For example, their share in the overall energy consumption in the United States in 2016 already was around 10%. 15% of the electricity generated was from alternative sources of energy. Industries in the United States actively use biofuels and other non-hydroelectric energy sources: their consumption has doubled since 2000 to 2016, and according to estimates of the United States Energy Information Administration, the amount of projects relying on alternative energy sources will only continue to grow (EIA). Other nations actively research and implement renewable energy as well. For example, Sweden is expected to become the first country in the world to completely give up on fossil fuels; the Swedish government has announced this g oal in 2015, causing huge investments into the country’s research and industries connected to renewable energy. Costa Rica was the first country to have reached 99% of its annual energy production solely due to alternative energy sources in 2015. Also in 2015, Denmark became the first country to produce 42% of its electricity with the help of solar turbines. The list of countries heavily developing alternative energy sources includes Morocco, Nicaragua, China, Germany, Scotland, and many others (CleanTechnica). Alternative energy sources have high chances to become the future of humankind’s energy solutions; fossil fuels were necessary at a certain stage of technological and scientific progress, but nowadays, it has become obvious that their extensive usage is not only expensive, but also dangerous for the environment and the health of billions of people around the world. Countries such as Sweden, the United States, Denmark, and several others actively research and implement renewable energy technologies, helping them to produce more electricity and thermal energy due to such sources as the Sun, rivers and waterfalls, ocean tides and waves, biomass, and the heat of the Earth itself. Renewable energy is cleaner, cheaper, and able to completely substitute fossil fuels. When this happens, the whole planet will become a better place to live.

Film Review A Beautiful Mind And Shutter Island - 996 Words

When it comes to Hollywood, knowing the difference between reality and sensationalized filmmaking for the sake of profit is important. Hollywood tends to exaggerate and manipulate the truth. The portrayal of Clinical disorders in film are examples of how Hollywood can alter reality. In both A Beautiful Mind and Shutter Island, the psychological disorder depicted is paranoid schizophrenia, but one does a better job of depicting the disorder accurately than the other. In A Beautiful Mind (Howard, 2001), the main character is John Nash, a brilliant mathematician from Princeton University. Nash’s symptoms first appear when he begins attending Princeton. He believes that he has a roommate named Charles Herman, but Herman is a hallucination caused by Nash’s schizophrenia. Later in the movie, Nash meets with Parcher, a U.S. Department of Defense agent, and believes that Parcher asks him to be a decoder for the government. Nevertheless, Parcher is also a hallucination inflicted by his disorder. Similarly, in Shutter Island (Scorsese, 2010), Edward Daniels has hallucinations of his dead wife and children. Daniels also has nonsensical delusions and believes that the hospital on Shutter Island is experimenting on innocent humans. These scenes show the manifestation of the symptoms of paranoid schizophrenia. Nash’s symptoms in A Beautiful Mind (Howard, 2001) are not limited to his hallucinations of Herman and Parcher. He appears to have disorganized thoughts as well, and has a breakdown

Two Unlikely Women in British Literature Free Essays

Two Unlikely Women in British Literature Rachael Haines British Literature Summer Term Critical Essay Allison, the Wife of Bath in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales and Lady Macbeth from Shakespeare’s Macbeth, are two bold women in literature who abandon the expectations of society on women of the time and instead use manipulation to gain power and control. These two women, Allison and Lady Macbeth are significant female characters because they represent upheaval in their respective societies both in their behavior and in their expected societal roles. Allison, a cloth-maker, lives in a time following the Norman Invasion. We will write a custom essay sample on Two Unlikely Women in British Literature or any similar topic only for you Order Now The Anglo-Saxon ways including the more even playing field between sexes gave way to â€Å"frenchified†, male-dominant way of life. Women were expected to serve their husbands yet Allison expects her men to serve her. Lady Macbeth also acts unexpectedly when she takes things into her own hands and doesn’t act as a submissive and noble woman should. Following the delivery of the three witches’ message to Macbeth regarding his fate, Lady Macbeth instantly realized what is being threatened and desperately wants to change his fate. Instead of acting honorably and as a servant to her husband, she devises a plan in which she will commit regicide and kill Duncan herself. She instead decides to convince Macbeth to commit the murder himself. At first glance, the Wife of Bath may seem to be in support of feminism yet Chaucer describes her in explicit ways when he writes about her headdress, her scarlet dress, her hips and particularly her gapped teeth which were commonly associated with lust during her time. Allison comes off as experienced and knowledgeable about men because she has had five husbands. Unlike the women of her time, Allison is dominant. She uses her body and sexuality to manipulate and gain control over her men. During her fifth marriage even a traumatic blow to the head at the hands of her husband doesn’t stop her controlling behavior and she lies on the floor as if she is dead. She dramatically pretends to be dead from the blow in order to incite concern with her husband. Lady Macbeth quickly jumps into the thick of things when she learns about her husband’s predicted fate. She and her husband both want the wealth and power. Lady Macbeth devises a plan to murder the king so that fulfillment of the witches’ message might not be met. Lady Macbeth is desperate. She feels her husband is too loyal and not ruthless enough; too weak. Lady Macbeth, although bold and ambitious recognizes that she isn’t really capable in her current state of carrying out murder. Instead she asks for the supernatural ability to be unsexed; to rid herself of feminine qualities so that she can murder the king. Instead of gaining supernatural power, Lady Macbeth convinces her husband to commit the murder†¦freeing her from the burden of actually committing the crime. Lady Macbeth becomes merely the catalyst for her husband’s out of control murderous behavior. Both women use manipulation to get what they want and both women live outside the societal norms of their time. However, Allison ultimately is a much more durable character. Allison presents herself as a promoter of sexual freedom and not a promoter of feminism. She uses her sexual skill and her body to gain what she purports that women want most; sovereignty over their husbands at a time when servitude by the woman was expected. For Allison, her sexuality was her biggest shock factor. At first meet, Lady Macbeth paints an image of herself as a villainous queen; both strong and ambitious to retain her power. Yet it isn’t long before we realize that Lady Macbeth cannot handle the guilt associated with being a murder and committing regicide even though her hands didn’t actually commit the murder, she pushed and supported her husband in completing the acts. Before long, the power hungry spree begins to take its toll on the ambitious Lady Macbeth. The audience witnesses her deteriorating health and mental stability as she fruitlessly tries to wash her hands of the guilt. In this comparison, I find that while both women were women outside of the norms of society they did convey an upheaval. They may have represented the frustration that women and men might have felt over the ever-changing society that both writers endured. However, regarding our leading ladies, Allison is a much stronger character who is able to endure the ill effects of her manipulation, while Lady Macbeth falls victim to them in her quick demise. Neither of these bold, unforgettable ladies were typical ladies of their time. How to cite Two Unlikely Women in British Literature, Papers

What Do You Do for Good Health free essay sample

Health is Wealth is very much true. One must try hard to remain healthy we are healthy ,we can easily fight with other problems of life. people do many different things to remain healthy . some go for healthy diet, other recommended exercise, and rest thinks health awareness is important ,after all Prevention is better than cure. A healthy diet is very necessary to remain healthy. People must take care of their diet. Everybody should read the ingredients before buying any eatables as well as how any vitamins it contains Americans are facing a very big problem of obesity. This is due to their unhealthy diet ,mostly people used to eat in fast food restaurants. Obesity leads to many health problems like heart attack, blood pressure, Cholesterol problem. Fat people can work less and with less efficiency. Balance diet which contains fruits, green vegetable Juices fibre are healthier choices for your regular die . We will write a custom essay sample on What Do You Do for Good Health or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page roper diet plan is always helpful for better health like less oily and sugary ood . Sticking to healthy diet keep you in great shape and in a healthy life style. Exercise is helpful to maintain our healthy lifestyle. Few minutes of exercise can make lot difference. While exercising, your body releases chemicals called endorphins that can improve your mood and the way you feel about yourself . Another source of exercise is yoga. Yoga not only gives physical exercise but also mental relaxation. Meditation is another source of exercise and realising stress this helps you in North- western University say sleep problems affect millions of adults, who could likely improve their quality of sleep, vitality, and mood with regular aerobic exercise. Health awareness is factor that people are living longer. Regular medical checkup, clean and tidy life style ,nutritious food are few examples. Everybody should read the ingredients before buying any eatables as well as how many vitamins it contains. People

Death Essays (1395 words) - English-language Films, Films, Neo-noir

Death Death: Good for the Dead, Bad for the Dying, and Worse for Those It Leaves Behind My whole life, death has been a distant thing to me. It is not even really a thing, but more of an idea. I have heard about death millions of times with the media. Everyday in the news, people are dying left and right with disease in the foreign countries, famine in distant lands, and even murder in the suburbs. I even heard about it a few times from my friends when they told me about their recent loses. With all of these stories of tragedy and awful accidents, I never felt any emotion. The news reporter's sympathy for these victims was not convincing enough to make me think that something tragic had happened, or my elementary school friend did not understand the situation himself in order to feel pain. If something was truly awful about the story, it was too far away for me to consider it a reality. When I was about eight years old, I experienced the first death in my family. My father's sister had died and my he got a call soon after. I was in the room when the phone rang and my dad answered the phone. He first sounded excited to hear the voice on the other end, but that happiness soon turned to devastation. His only sister had passed away and he began to cry. My father is not a crying man, and he soon regained his composure and finished the conversation. He was able to put his sadness aside and tend to business. This was a very small event, but it had a large impact on me and helped shape my ideas about the idea of death. The way that I saw my father handle this so-called tragedy gave me the impression that life was almost like a movie. What goes on in the movie might be sad or scary or whatever, but it is not a big deal. We just need to get over the emotion because the movie is still playing and something different is happening now. The reason that this event was not a traged y to me is that it was extremely distant from me and in reality, it had very little to do with me. My aunt lived very far away from my home, so we rarely visited and I have no memories of her except for a very fuzzy mental picture. We did not attend the funeral because of the distance, but my father flew to pay his last respects to his sister. He was gone for a couple of days and was a little shaky when he returned, but all-in-all things were just like normal. Moral of the story: Death is a small speed bump, which should not be adjusted for, but should not be a big deal. When death occurs in a person's life, they put down what they are doing and tend to the matter, they come back to continue their business, and make like normal. They, with good reason, take off of school or work. They make up for the things that they missed and everything is fine again. They do not want to bring their emotions because they do not want to show their pain to others. They repress their feelings for the benefit of others. When I see this, I see a person who has experienced this thing called death, but they are not sad. This just reinforces the ideas that I have made for myself about death and its place in life. About four years ago, I had my first realization of the power of death. This was a slight taste of what death really meant, but it came at a huge cost for others. It all started one day in the middle of summer. I was downstairs watching the television while my older sister and her friend were hanging out upstairs. We all heard a few pops that sounded a lot like small firecrackers that came from outside. I disregarded this noise as neighborhood children messing around, but my sister and her friend went outside to investigate. The sight that they found would change their lives. On

Phonics Definition and Examples in English

Phonics Definition and Examples in English A method of teaching reading based on the sounds of letters, groups of letters, and syllables  is known as phonics. This method of teaching reading is commonly contrasted with whole language approaches, which emphasize learning whole words in meaningful contexts. During the 19th century, phonics was commonly used as a synonym for phonetics. In the 20th century, phonics acquired its present meaning as a method of teaching reading. In practice,  phonics  refers to several different but generally overlapping methods of instruction. Four of those methods are summarized below. Analytic(al) Phonics During the 1960s, numerous basal reading series included a manual outlining how to teach each story. The manual included a program for ​analytical phonics instruction that recommended that the teacher use known words and ask children to analyze the phonetic elements in these words. . . .Analytic phonics relies on readers knowing a large number of words at sight. Drawing from known sight words, teachers directed students to make inferences about the phonic relationships within words containing the same letter combinations. In other words, the student matched the sounds in a known word with the sounds in the new word (Walker, 2008). . . .However, in the 1960s, some reading programs differed from the mainstream basal readers that used analytic phonics. A few basal readers included instruction using linguistic units that had recurring patterns. The linguistic-phonics system used the idea that the English language had recurring written patterns that were systematic to develop their program.(Barbara J. Walker, History of Phonics Instruction. An Essential History of Current Reading Practices, ed. by Mary Jo Fresch. International Reading Association, 2008) Linguistic Phonics In linguistic phonics, beginning instruction usually focuses on the word patterns found in words like cat, rat, mat, and bat. These selected words are presented to the students. Children need to make generalizations about the short a sound by learning these words in print. Consequently, linguistic phonics lessons are based on decodable books that present repetitions of a single pattern (Mat saw a cat and a rat). . . . Linguistic phonics . . . is like analytic phonics in that it emphasizes word patterns rather than individual letter sounds. However, linguistic phonics is not typically espoused by top-down advocates, because it does not emphasize naturally occurring text.(Ann Maria Pazos Rago, The Alphabetic Principle, Phonics, and Spelling: Teaching Students the Code. Reading Assessment and Instruction for All Learners, ed. by Jeanne Shay Schumm. Guilford Press, 2006) Synthetic Phonics The sounding-out-and-blending approach to decoding is known as synthetic phonics. In a synthetic phonics program, students are taught to decode new words by retrieving from memory the sound that each letter, or combination of letters, in a word represents and blending the sounds into a recognizable word (National Reading Panel, 2000). It is a parts-to-whole approach (Strickland, 1998).(Irene W. Gaskins, Interventions to Develop Decoding Proficiencies. Handbook of Reading Disability Research, ed. by Richa Allington and Anne McGill-Franzen. Routledge, 2011) Embedded Phonics Embedded approaches to teaching  phonics involve students in learning phonics skills by reading authentic texts. This approach may be compared to whole language; however, embedded phonics involves planned skills taught within the context of authentic literature. Embedded phonics formed in response to the intense criticism experienced by the whole language movement, and highlights the role of phonics instructions within the context of authentic literature. (Mark-Kate Sableski, Phonics. Encyclopedia of Educational Reform and Dissent, ed. by Thomas C. Hunt, James Carper, Thomas J. Lasley, and C. Daniel Raisch. Sage, 2010) Summary In summary, deep and thorough knowledge of letters, spelling patterns, and words, and of the phonological translations of all three, are of inescapable importance to both skillful reading and its acquisition. By extension, instruction designed to develop childrens sensitivity to spellings and their reactions to pronunciations should be of paramount importance in the development of reading skills. This is, of course, precisely what is intended of good phonic instruction.(Marilyn Jager Adams, Beginning to Read: Thinking and Learning About Print. MIT Press, 1994)

Entrepreneurship joint venture Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Entrepreneurship joint venture - Assignment Example Contents Abstract 1 Contents 2 Introduction 3 Importance of venture and Working capital 4 Forms of business finance 4 Advantages and disadvantages of Venture Capital as source of finance 5 Salient issues around venture capitalists 6 Conclusion and recommendations 7 References 7 Introduction Venture capital is a form of financing that is widely used by small, medium, and large enterprises in economy. Venture capital is also referred to as equity financing owing to the fact that it addresses the financing needs of a firm in exchange of stake in the firm in question. This form of equity financing is often pursued by firms, which do not have the capacity to seek financing from other traditional financing modes like those sourced through the banks and public markets. It is worth noting that there are other forms of financing options, which the business can decide to explore to cater for its growth strategy and other operations (Mclaney & Atrill, 2006). Such options include loans from bank s, debentures, owner’s capital, and grant finance. Importance of venture and Working capital Venture and working capital are critical for any form of business that is starting up. The business under focus in this case is a beverage company known as Thasta (Mclaney & Atrill, 2006). The company by its nature needs both venture and working capital to realize increased business performance. ... sound working capital, it is important that the business possess an aggressive credit policy besides ensuring that there is operational efficiency at the facility (Mclaney & Atrill, 2006). On the other hand, it is important to take note that venture capital is equally important for the startup of the business because it does not affect the liquidity of a business. A business that is just starting operations rarely has revenue hence may not be able to afford loans or debenture leaving venture capital option as the best option for the company since it does not involve any financial obligations. It is worth noting that with regard to venture capital the various operations and projects of the company are financed in exchange for the shares of the company. Forms of business finance Apart from the venture capital, there exist other forms of capital, which include loans, debentures, owner’s capital, and grants. Loans are funds, which are advanced to the business by financial institut ions such as Banks. According to Mclaney and Atrill (2006), it is worth noting that loans attract interest over and above the principal amount. The business must therefore ensure that it regularly repays the principal amount and accruing interest. A debenture is yet another form of business financing option, which is available to the business. According to Mclaney and Atrill (2006), debentures are loan stocks, which are given subject to a trust deed. The debentures can be either redeemable or irredeemable. The firms can also raise capital for the expansion projects of the firm through equity shares. The only downside to equity shares is that it reduces the shareholding capacity of the company. Mclaney and Atrill (2006) say that grant is another form of financing option, which the firm can

Public Relations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Public Relations - Essay Example Corporate social responsibility will always be given the emphasis that it richly deserves because it makes or breaks an organization in the sheer sense of the word1. To start with, public relations aim to focus on the aspect of building credibility for the sake of the organization in the eyes of the publics so that they can think, act and feel positive about the organization, the individual or an entity for that matter. The public relations are usually given importance because the organizations know that they will be able to derive a great amount of mileage from the intended publics as they aim to touch upon new avenues and explore the novel pathways upon which these publics can be reached in essence. What is most important is the fact that ethical manifestations start making the rounds of the discussions which center on the premise of public relations and the related corporate social responsibility2. ... Since public relations are all about understanding how the organization should be viewed by the public in terms of its important dealings, it will never afford to have a negative word about its own self. The role of public relations within the corporate social responsibility ranks is all the more necessary to gain an insight from. This is because public relations have always been forthright about the organization’s corrective stance no matter how difficult it is to reveal to the varied publics. This gains importance with the changing times since people are now properly realizing how they must be treated at the hands of these organizations and what kind of attitudes rule the roost at the end of the day. Public relations will always assist in building up a corporate social responsibility understanding as it takes care of the problems which arise every now and then, and assures one of complete responsibility and commitment to an organizational cause. The role of the public relati ons at improving and enhancing the levels of corporate social responsibility should be such that there is empathy within the related ranks, and this shall mean success for the organizations in the long run. If corporate social responsibility understandings are properly managed, then this would immense success for the organization because these are run parallel with the public relations domains4. The management regimes of the organizations always look at addressing the grey areas so that these weaknesses could be plugged and turned into strengths in a very free flowing manner5. Since the corporate social responsibility measures take care of the ethical look of the organization and thus it creates harmony amongst the aegis of the organization, it would always

The Story of an Hour Kate Chopin

The Story of an Hour Kate Chopin The early 1900s was an era where society inflicted standards that suppressed women mentally and physically. From birth, women had to overcome many cultural and societal boundaries because of their gender such as being told how to converse and clothe, and even who to marry. Women in those times lacked many rights such as freedom of speech, the right to an education, and skills that would help them become employed. Every stage of their lives was controlled by a male figure, starting with their fathers from birth to their husbands during marriage. Unfortunately, a womans ideal role for men was to perform domestic duties inside the house and other duties such as sexual deeds; a womans voice and concerns were never considered priority nor were given respect. The stories of â€Å"The Story of an Hour†, by Kate Chopin and â€Å"The Girls in Their Summer Dresses†, by Irwin Shaw, expose a dominating attitude towards women and illustrate how they could be trapped in unsatisfying marriages because of their husbands thoughtlessness, exploitation, and domination. The protagonists in these stories have accepted their roles in their marriages by being passive spouses. Kate Chopins â€Å"The Story of an Hour†, is a story regarding a woman, Mrs. Mallard, who is trapped in a suppressing marriage and dreadfully wants to escape. This story describes an hour of freedom that has been given to her. Although a very short story, it seems like every sentence has an intense significance and meaning to it that makes the reader think in depth. Even though her husbands full name is given to the readers, â€Å"Brently Mallard†, she is only referred to as â€Å"Mrs. Mallard†, giving the hint of the oppression she had to go through and the degradation society enforced upon women in that time period. Mrs. Mallard, the protagonist of the story is troubled by her heart condition and is oppressed by her husband who loves her and does not want to purposely suppress authority, but sadly, it was the society that built the peoples personality and character, and set the standards in the nineteenth century. Interestingly enough, Chopin uses the techniqu e of foreshadowing in the first sentence of the story indicating the readers that something terrible is bound to happen to Mrs. Mallard, perhaps a heart affiliated problem. The quote,†Knowing that Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble, great care was taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husbands death.†(Chopin 1) misinforms readers in to believing that everything will be fine. Irony could be noticed from the way Mrs. Mallard acts in response to her husbands death. Normally when a widow is informed about their spouses death, they become sad and express their grief; however, when Mrs. Mallard heard the awful news from her sister Josephine, she accepted it and proceeded to her room where she could be alone. This allowed the reader to adopt a similar prospective through her point of view, a new life and a chance to live oppression free. When she proceeds to her room, she sits down on a roomy, comfortable arm chair facing the open window. The reader should instantly inquire the use of the term â€Å"Comfortable† (Chopin 1), and question the fact that she is not miserable. While looking outside the window, she observed nature carefully symbolizing her excitement for a new life. The quote, â€Å"She could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with the new spring life†¦ the delicious breath of rain was in the air†¦ the notes of distant song†¦ countless sparrows were twittering in the eaves†¦patches of the blue sky showing here and there through the clouds† (Chopin 1) describes this scene adequately. At this point of the story the reader is puzzled by Chopins use of foreshadowing whether she is sad at all due to her observance of all the beautiful aspects of nature. While fantasizing about her new life, it seemed like her conscious was trying to put a stop to her happiness, leading her to realize that she was loved by her husband even though he was s uppressive time to time, his intentions were good; however, Chopin was trying to tell the readers she had only loved him time to time and that most of the time she had no love for him, as this quote describes, â€Å"And yet she had loved him-sometimes. Often, she had not.† (Chopin 2). Chopin confuses the reader by using another method of foreshadowing making the ending even more surprising, â€Å"She breathed a quick prayer that life might be long.† (Chopin 2), and that she considers herself to be a â€Å"Goddess of victory† (Chopin 2). Chopin uses an ironic ending for her story when Mrs. Mallard is surprised to death when her husband enters the house looking perfectly healthy without even knowing the accident took place. The paradox prolongs when the readers find out that she dies due to heart disease caused by joy. Earlier when she heard the agonizing news of her husbands death, she was fairly pleased of the idea of being free, having no authority figure gover ning her life; however, she was not eager to go through that life again, causing her to die once she saw her husband alive. Irwin Shaws, â€Å"The Girls in Their Summer Dresses†, depicts a couple whose marriage is in jeopardy due to the husbands lack of consideration for his wifes feelings. The story starts with the protagonist of the story, Frances, and her husband, Michael, enjoying a walk on a Sunday afternoon in New York City, part of Francess plans to spend the whole day alone with her husband as deliberated initially. While walking down the street, Frances caught her husband checking out a pretty girl who leads her to protest against it, â€Å"Shes not so pretty†¦Anyway, not pretty enough to take a chance breaking your neck looking at her.†(Shaw 1). When confronted of his actions, Michael carelessly replies, â€Å"I look at everything†¦I look at women and men†¦I casually inspect the universe.† (Shaw 2). This statement provides the readers with an idea of Michaels character who is the dominating figure in the story, who is lacking respect for his wife and is explo iting her weakness of not ending their relationship. Divorce was uncommon in the early 1900s even when men commit adultery. Francess feelings were depicted well as the author wrote, â€Å"She began to cry†¦someday youre going to make a move†¦Michael didnt say anything. He sat watching the bartender slowly peel a lemon.† (Shaw 4). Irrationally, Michael lets Frances know that â€Å"Sometimes I [Michael] would like to be free† (Shaw 4), and that eventually one day hell â€Å"make a move† (Shaw 4). Unfortunately, Michael treated women as objects who were merely around to perform sexual favours, he even depicted his wife as a sexual object when they arrived at a bar for some drinks, as this quote describes, â€Å"She got up from the table and walked across the room†¦Michael watched her walk, thinking, what a pretty girl, what nice legs.† (Shaw 4). Interestingly enough, Michael turns everything around by stating â€Å"Its a nice day and we both feel good and theres no reason why we have to break it up.† (Shaw 4), by declaring this, Michael blames the fact that their day is turning out to be unpleasant on Frances, and due to her has low self-esteem and insecurity, she accepts the claim by saying, â€Å"All right. I dont know why I started this. Lets drop it. Lets have a good time.† (Shaw 2). By stating this, Frances portrayed herself to be a submissive individual; meanwhile, Michael was careless and disrespectful. Throughout the nineteenth century, a womans purpose was merely based on performing domestic duties in their homes, and they did not contribute to the household income in any way. Women were dishonoured and exploited by men to a point that they were simply degraded to a childs level in society. Excessive male dominance and authority guided countless women getting the sensation of feeling trapped in their household, incapable to flee from the imprisonment enforced upon them by their spouses. The stories, â€Å"The Story of an Hour†, and â€Å"The Girls in Their Summer Dresses†, both depict tolerable house wives who are dominated and exploited by their husbands and have acquiesced to their role in their relationship and are submissive individuals who do not rise up and rebel against their husbands. These stories truthfully exemplify how women in the 19th century had to accept their husbands for who they were, and did not have many alternatives other than accepting to live with the repression until death did them apart.

Research Proposal Outline Essay

Research Proposal Outline Literature Review a. What was the topic of your literature review? Media violence and its effects on children In 1 paragraph, review the overall findings in this field, based on your literature review.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Large numbers of studies have suggested the media violence has bad effect on child’s psychological development.   The media can be used as an effective tool in teaching & developing sound habits in children through parental guidance & proper planning of the medium’s people. Parents need to satisfy the child’s confusion regarding fantasies shown on TV so they can learn to critique what they view. â€Å"According to the Office of the Surgeon General, children are theoretically more susceptible to behavioral influences when they are active participants than when they are observers.†( cited in Education Encyclopedia, 2007) Children associate themselves easily to a character they see on TV. A discussion with 8-10 year olds about who they wanted to be like, perceived that they are most influenced by unrealistic characters who are portrayed as braver & stronger than real people. Unfortunately, this fact was augmented for negative characters than positive ones.    Anxieties resulting from excessive violence viewing can pilot physical ailments in children & adults alike. The September 11th events were highlighted by the media; preschoolers reacted to the situation by showing emotional distress over the blood & bodies showed on national TV, elementary school students created ideas of their own & feeling scared for their own family’s wellbeing by watching the attack. Teenagers were most concerned for the victims & realized the effects of the calamity. Research Design Issues a. What is your research question?   What are the effects of media violence on child’s psychological development? What are your hypotheses? Violence shown in media can have bad affect on child’s psychological development and can result in various psychological problems and social problems.   Ã‚   Advertising &entertainment industries are a booming business but it can be used to incorporate positive information to the masses. It represents the culture & spirit of the respective country to the rest of the world & must not be used casually. Parents & teachers should come up with strategies to create a sense of understanding in the children from an early age.   The parents should realize what effects the movies & content on TV are having on their children & try to minimize TV viewing at home level. Some ways that may be incorporated by parents to limit children’s revelation to violence are: Restricting & keeping a check on what their children view on TV Discussing the programs with older children or young adults to clear their minds of any confusion & help them in expressing their opinions. Start a family oriented time by going for picnics, organizing a special lunch or dinner. Allow the children to watch TV for a selected time period & only programs that are desirable for their viewing. Offer criticism on TV channels & sponsors for showing in appropriate programs or content so as to force them to use proper censorship. What kind of research design will you use? (Include the aspects of research design discussed in class). Aka longitudinal, cross-sectional, etc†¦ We would prefer a longitudinal research design. Participants a. What kind of participants will be in your study (ages, gender, ethnicity, SES, other important characteristics)? The study will be done on children of age between 5-12 of both sexes and parents of age between 30-50 years of any ethnicity. How would you characterize this sample (ex. Representative, oversampling, within-group)? The sample is within-group. How many participants (if there are 2 or more groups-how many in each group)? Two groups of children and one group of parents and one group of teachers will be formed. Group A and A1 will be of children and group B will be of parents, and group B1 will be of teachers. Children group will have 48 participants and parents group will have 44 participants. Group A will be the group of normal children, while Group A1 of those with violent attitude and behavior. How will you recruit your participants (if there are 2 or more groups, describe for each group)? We’ll contact schools and talk with the administration to allow us take surveys from children and teachers. Children will be asked several questions regarding their activities at home and school. Teachers will be asked about the performance and behavior of students at school. What will you control for if you have more than 1 group of participants? Control group will include those children who have normal attitude and behavior and do not suffer from any psychological or social problem. Measures a. List the variables you will measure.   (Be specific and use your hypotheses as a guide.) Variables Number/name of violent movies viewed Number/name of cartoons viewed per day Number/name of shows viewed per day How will you measure these variables? (Give specific names of measures, or if you are developing your own measure, briefly describe it). Statistics ANOVA will be used to measure variables. State which participants will complete which measures (ex. Parents will fill out the Child Behavior Checklist; children will be observed in the Strange Situation). Children will be asked about their activities at home and school and the number of movies, shows and cartoons they watch per day. Parents will be asked about child’s behavior at home and social meetings. Teachers will be asked about child’s behavior at school and performance in studies. Procedures a. Describe your interview procedures (when, where, and how).   If you are doing a longitudinal study, you need to describe this for each assessment period. Assessment period of 4 months Three different questionnaires will be prepared for each group, children, parents and teachers. Interviews will be conducted at school in the afternoon for children and evening for teachers after they are free from class teaching. Are you compensating your participants? If so, how much? If you are doing a longitudinal study, you need to describe this for each time period. Gifts will be distributed among children after they take survey and give true information. For each survey gifts will be presented. If you are doing a longitudinal study, you need to describe how you will track your participants between assessment periods. Each participants contact number will be taken on first consent of participating in the study. Each participant will be provided with one telephone and mobile number of the research for easy contact and communication.

Comfort Theory Essay

In my nursing practice with long term care residents, I frequently care for dying residents. Instead of simply providing these patients with medication to ease the pain, I wanted to learn about ways to enhance the comfort of the dying patient and assist their beloved family throughout the difficult process. This desire led me to undertake a concept analysis of comfort. Through my research at the end of life, I discovered Katharine Kolcaba’s theory of comfort. I found her theory to be usefully in describing the concept of comfort care and decided to further analyze her theory and portray its use in the nursing practice. Katharine Kolcaba was born on December 8, 1944 in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1965, she graduated from St. Luke’s Hospital School of Nursing and started her nursing career. Even at that time, Katharine had interests in the developing of nursing profession. Particularly, she strived to understand how to implicate nursing in gerontology correctly. Early years of her career were the time of establishment and development of Kolcaba as a theorist. She studied a great number of early theory works and began to apply this knowledge at her work place. In 1997, she had her next achievements such as earning of Ph.D. in nursing, and receiving of a Certificate of Authority as a Clinical Nursing Specialist. This year Katharine also received the Marie Haug Student Award for being excellent student in Aging Studies. This award was from her native Case Western Reserve University. Kolcaba’s specialist field consisted of comfort studies, nursing theory, and nursing research. Nevertheless, the special place in that list took gerontology and the end of life. From that time, she especially concentrated on research and development in gerontology. The next professional level was the teaching. In 1987, Katharine Kolcaba started Bachelor’s program of Nursing, which specialized on gerontology. It was a starting point of developing her concepts of nursing. At that time,† she developed her propositions about comfort with specific attention on end-of-life and palliative care with focus on gerontology as an emerging specialty in nursing† (Nursing Theories, 2012). As a result, Katharine published Comfort Theory and Practice: a Vision for Holistic Health Care and Research in 1999. She continued teaching in  University and developed her theory. In 2003, the publishing of the Comfort Theory and Practice: A vision for Holistic Health Care became a great result of the hard work. In the same year, Midwest Nursing Research Society rewarded Katharine Kolcaba with the Advancement of Science Award for her work End of Life and Palliative Care Nursing. Then, she took part in co-writing of article published in Anesthesia Nursing. In 2005 she received Second Place Award in the Best Practice Category by the American Society. According to Kolcaba (2003): Katharine Kolcaba first b egan â€Å"theorizing about the outcome of comfort† (Kolcaba, 2003) while working on a dementia unit as a head nurse and pursuing her Master’s of Science in Nursing at Case Western Reserve University. She further yet continued her research while pursuing her doctoral degree which she ended up completing in 1997. Her interest was sparked by her understanding that comfort was a necessary component for optimum function in the patients she cared for on the dementia unit. With the patients being largely non-verbal, the nurses were required to interpret the patient’s actions to determine what may be causing discomfort in a patient, thus leading to disruptive behaviors. From this assessment it was possible to implement care plans to treat underlying issues or enhance patient comfort leading to improved patient care. Her work produced numerous articles and a book describing the theory of comfort, its assumptions, the major concepts and their relationships, techniques for measuring comfort in a variety of environments, and discussions for the theory’s application in nursing practice. An overview of this will be presented. First, it is important to understand what comfort is i n Kolcaba’s terms. Historically, Florence Nightingale spoke of comfort when she stated that â€Å"it must never be lost sight of what observation is for. It is not for the sake of piling up miscellaneous information or curious facts, but for the sake of saving life and increasing health and comfort† (Peterson & Bredow, 2004). Comfort is also referred to by many major nursing theorists including Orlando, Roy, Watson, Henderson, Paterson, and Zderad, but no one sought to understand the nature of comfort itself. Kolcaba undertook this effort when she performed her analysis of the concept of comfort. In her analysis, Kolcaba described two dimensions. â€Å"The first dimension of comfort consists of three states, called relief, ease and transcendence† (Kolcaba, 1994). â€Å"The second dimension of comfort is the contexts in which comfort can occur†¦which are  derived from the nursing literature about holism† (Kolcaba, 1994). The definitions of the three states of comfort are presented next. Kolcaba derived her three states of comfort from other nursing theorists. Orlando originally spoke of relief stating that â €Å"nursing actions should be designed to meet the physical and mental needs of patients and it focuses on how the nurse deciphers what the patient’s needs are† (Kolcaba, 1991). Ultimately, Kolcaba defined relief as â€Å"when the patient is capable or if comfort provides respite from the stress and anguish of disease, debilitation or injury.† The second state of comfort, ease, is defined as â€Å"an enduring stated of peaceful contentment. Henderson originally spoke of the concept of ease when she stated that â€Å"only after a discomfort is relieved can the patient proceed to recovery† (Kolcaba, 1991). Finally, of renewal or transcendence, Kolcaba wrote that it â€Å"implies enhanced powers, strengthened motivation, and positive attitudes and outlooks for meeting the life challenges normal for that person† or â€Å"the state in which one rises above problems or pain† (Kolcaba, 1991). This was developed from Paterson and Zderads’s statement that â€Å"comfort is the state in which the patient is free to be and become controlling and planning one’s own destiny.† After gaining understanding of the three states of comfort, it is necessary to discuss the four contexts in within which they occur. The four concepts are physical, psychospiritual, environmental, and sociocultural. The first context comfort can occur in is physical. Kolcaba defined the physical context as â€Å"pertaining to bodily sensations.† The phsycopspiritual context was defined as â€Å"pertaining to the internal awareness of self, including esteem, concept, sexuality and meaning in one’s life; it can also encompass one’s relationship to a higher order or being.† The third context, sociocultural was defined as â€Å"pertaining to the external background of human experience; encompasses light, noise, ambience, color, temperature and natural versus synthetic elements.† While most would think of comfort as a strictly physical experience with only one possible outcome, Kolcaba believed it was important to stress that comfort encompassed a variety of states and contexts that were necessary to consider when ensuring the best patient outcomes. To best depict the relationship between them, she developed a grid in her taxonomic structure of comfort that helped t o further define her ideas. A discussion of the major concepts in the theory is presented next. There are seven major concepts presented by Kolcaba in her theory of comfort. These concepts are health care needs, nursing interventions, intervening variables, patient comfort, health-seeking behaviors, institutional integrity and institutional outcomes. She defines health care needs as â€Å"needs that arise for patients in stressful health care situations (Kolcaba, 2001). Intervening variables are those things â€Å"that will affect the outcomes† and she describes patient comfort as â€Å"the immediate state of being strengthened by having needs met.† Health seeking behaviors are defined as â€Å"patient actions of which they may or may not be aware and which may or may not be observed that are predictor or indicators of improved health† (Kolcaba, 2001). Institutional integrity is defined as â€Å"the quality or state of health care organizations† (Kolcaba, 2003). Finally, she described institutional outcomes as â€Å"decreased lengths of stay, successful discharges, and improved public relations when patients and families are happy with their health care† (Kolcaba, 2001), which for hospital administrators is the ultimate goal when comfort is a key nursing consideration. With the key concepts identified and defined, their relationship to one another needs to be understood. Kolcaba clearly described the relationship between her major concepts when she stated her positions in theory of comfort: Nurses identify patients’ comfort needs that have not been met by existing support systems. Nurses design interventions to address those needs. Intervening variables are taken into account in designing interventions and mutually agreeing on reasonable immediate and/or subsequent health-seeking behavior outcomes. If enhanced comfort in achieved, patients are strengthened to engage in health-seeking behaviors. When patients engage in health seeking behaviors as a result of being strengthened by comforting actions, nurses and patients are more satisfied with their health care. When patients are satisfied with their health care in a specific situation, that institution retains its integrity. The last relationship, not defined explicitly by Kolcaba, is that institutional outcomes are direct result of understanding and addressing a patients comfort needs. Finally, before an analysis of the theory of comfort can be completed, it is necessary to understand the major assumptions made by Kolcaba when developing her theory. According to Kolcaba, those assumptions underpinning her theory of comfort are as follows. Human beings have holistic responses to complex stimuli. Comfort is a desirable holistic outcome that is germane to the discipline of nursing. Human beings strive to meet, or have to meet, their basic comfort needs; it is an active endeavor. Institutional integrity has a normative and descriptive component that is based on a patient-oriented value system. The theory of comfort is referred to as a middle range theory. Whall compares middle range theories with grand theories and states that middle range theories â€Å"contain fewer concepts and relationships, are adaptable to a wide range of practice and experience, can be built from many sources, and are concrete enough to be tested† (Kolcaba, 2001). Given this description, the theory of comfort can be readily identified as a middle range theory. With regard to the concepts presented by Kolcaba, they are clearly defined and the relationship between them are easily understood. The concepts are generalized and measurable through the development of numerous measurement tools designed fo r specific environments. The theory itself had been applied in a number of different environments including hospice, perioperative, radiation therapy and general care areas. Questionnaires to test the theory of comfort have been developed for each of these areas and successfully tested and employed. The scope of the theory is narrow and stands at a low level of abstraction. Most importantly, the theory is readily applicable to the nursing discipline and provide a clear framework relevant to meeting patient’s needs during a stressful life event. It allows the nurse to define, with input from the patient, what their needs are within the four contexts, to address those needs with nursing interventions, to evaluate the success or failure of those interventions and to continue in a cyclic manner until the patient achieves a state of comfort. In essence, the framework provides a process model for nursing that is specific to comfort and precise. It is easy for a nurse to use and understand and can be applied in many environments. In evaluating and analyzing the theory of comfort, numerous research possibilities come to mind. Given my specific interest in end of life care, it is important to understand that the nurse is focused not only on the comfort of the patient but also on that of the families and caregivers of the dying patient. While one would think of health-seeking  behaviors to be focused on cure or rehabilitation, they can also be used to aid in a more peaceful or comfortable death. Therefore, a study that evaluated the level of comfort experienced by the patient and family members with and without direct care provided by the family members could be undertaken. The study would seek to determine whether less medical intervention is required to ensure patient comfort during the dying process if there is increased family involvement in care. This nurse would hypothesize that, in measuring patient comfort, less medical intervention would be required to maintain an acceptable level of comfort in death if family members have greater involvement in providing care. Conversely, another possible study could involve family member comfort and ask if family members have an increased level of comfort with greater involvement in patient care during the period proceeding death. The sample population for both studies would by dying patients and their family members. To measure family member comfort, data could be collected utilizing a likert-scale questionnaire. To measure patient comfort, and questionnaire could be developed for those patients that are able to verbalize or the nurse could be given a list of objective signs and symptoms of comfort to evaluate in order to determine patient comfort. Kolcaba’s work has led to a universal theory applicable to all areas of nursing. She has captured the quintessential essence of nursing in a simple and structured framework. Use of her framework in practice can lead to improved patient experiences in one of the most important outcomes of nursing practice, patient comfort. References Kolcaba, Katharine (2001). Evolution of the mid range theory of comfort for outcomes research. Nursing Outlook, 49(2), 86-92 Kolcaba, Katharine (1991B). An analysis of the concept of comfort. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 16, 1301-1310 Kolcaba, Katharine (1991A). A taxonomic structure for the concept of comfort. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 23(4), 237-240 Kolcaba, Katherine (1994). A theory of holistic comfort for nursing. Journal of Advance Nursing, 19, 1178-1184 Kolcaba, Katherine (2003). Comfort theory and practice: A Vision for Holistic Health Care and Research. New York: Springer Publishing Company, Inc. Peterson, S.J., & Bredow, T.S. (2004). Comfort. In Middle Ranger Theories: Application to Nursing Research (pp. 255-273). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Louisiana Wordsearch, Crossword Puzzle, and More

Overviewing the impact of Corporate Governance - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 22 Words: 6684 Downloads: 7 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Finance Essay Type Narrative essay Did you like this example? In this world of constant changes, corporate are in a need to maintain their financial position and increasing their financial performance. A huge degree of emphasis has been laid on continuous learning, research, development and strategic planning. Corporate governance is regarded as a means to ensure that companies are run properly and at the same time, minimising the risk of corporate failure. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Overviewing the impact of Corporate Governance" essay for you Create order Coyle (2007) has stated that it is an assessment system that serves as a signal indicating mechanism, not only can provide enterprise with a manoeuvrability basis and instruction for furnishing its corporate governance, and provide corporate governance assessment record to the society, but also at the same time, review timely the changes of strategic policy environment and provide a favourable environment for social mutual governance. Historical Perspective of Corporate Governance Coyle (2007) related that the main concerns for better practices in corporate governance started in the UK in the late 1980s and 1990s. The reports are as follows: Report Title and year published Author name Report facts, main arguments, recommendations Cadbury Report (1992) Sir Adrian Cadbury The report was part of the Committee on the Financial Aspects of Corporate Governance. There was no statutory obligation of the code, but the London Stock Exchange (LSE) required all listed companies to include a statement of compliance with the code in their annual report. Myners Report (1995) Paul Myners Various recommendations were made concerning the relationship between institutional shareholders and company managements, including communications. Greenbury Report (1995) Greenbury Remuneration committees should be made up Non Executive Directors (NEDs) to make decisions on senior executive pay. Bonuses for directors should be linked to satisfactory performance criteria. More transparency in remuneration. These recommendations were accepted by the LSE and were incorporated into the listing rules. Hampel Committee (1998) Sir Ronald Hanpel The committee was chaired in 1995 and led in due course to the publication in 1998 of the Combined Code on Good Governance. The report laid emphasis on directors remuneration, relations with shareholders, accountability and audit. The code was divide into two main parts, namely best practices for companies and best practice for institutional investors. Higgs Report (2002) Derek Higgs The report envisaged a more demanding and significant role for NEDs and focused on the effectiveness on NEDs in promoting company performance and accountability An international History of Corporate Governance. Efforts to improve corporate governance in various countries have resulted in series of reports, legislative measures and codes of conducts. Coyle (2007) mentioned that the need for good corporate governance is a matter of international concern. In developing countries the drive for corporate governance arose out of the need to provide sound governance and institutional practices so as to attract FDI. In develop countries, the impetus was on the quality of reporting and reduce the executive abuses. The OECD Principles of Corporate Governance Published in 1999 and subsequently revised in 2004, the OECD principles are to help governments especially those in developing countries to improve their legal, regulatory and institutional frameworks for corporate governance in their respective countries. The six main principles of the OECD are: Ensuring the basis for an effective corporate governance framework Protecting and facilitating the exercise of shareholder rights Ensuring the equitable treatment of all shareholders Recognising the rights of shareholders as established by law Ensuring timely and accurate disclosure on all material information for the corporation Enhancing the mechanism for the boards accountability to the company and the shareholders while ensuring the effective monitoring of the management by the board These principles are not compulsory requirements but are intended to provide countries with adequate guidelines in the implementation of good governance practices. Commonwealth Association for Corporate Governance (CACG) CACG was established in April 1998 in response to the Edinburgh Declaration of the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in 1997 to promote excellence in corporate governance in the Commonwealth. The CACG has two main objectives: To promote good standards in corporate governance and business practice throughout commonwealth. To facilitate the development of appropriate institutions which will be able to advance, teach and disseminate such standards. Principles for Corporate Governance: Towards global competiveness and economic accountability (1999) produced various guidelines concerning corporate governance practices. Corporate Governance in the European Union In May 2003, the EU commission presented a communication entitled: Modernising Company Law and Enhancing Corporate Governance in the European Union A Plan to Move Forward. The main reasons for this statement were mainly because of recent corporate scandals and to harmonise the rules for creating a Single European Market. The action plan consisted of six headings: Corporate Governance Capital Maintenance and Health Groups and pyramids Corporate Restructuring and mobility The European Private Company Cooperatives and other forms of enterprises. The King Report (South Africa) The second King Report on Corporate Governance for South Africa (2002) promotes the concept that companies especially in developing countries should take into account the interests of the communities in which they operate while distinguishing between accountability and responsibility. The report stressed that boards must apply tests of accountability, fairness, transparency and be responsible towards the companys identified stakeholders. Mervyn Kings approach might be said to meld corporate governance and corporate social responsibility. The Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX) 2002 (United States) The need for greater investor protection especially after various corporate scandals starting with Enron has been one of the main thrusts of Sarbanes-Oxley. The official name of SOX is the Public Company Accounting Reform and Investor Protection Act of 2002. The SOX covers issues such as: Establishing a public company accounting oversight board Auditor Independence Corporate Responsibility Greater Financial Disclosure Definition of Corporate Governance according to Various Writers. Corporate Governance is the system by which companies are directed and controlled. Cadbury Report (1992). Good governance is not a new concept. It has existed since the early days civilisation. Both eastern and western civilisation recognized and preached the principles of good governance. The philosophy of good governance can be related also to various religious studies like the Hinduism, Islamism, Christianism, Judaism, Buddhism and others. In the modern business world, the concept of governance has been put in the context of business management, thus corporate management and control and to end up with nowadays highly used business word Corporate Governance Corporate Governance is not a new issue. It has an ancient touch, since the formation of companies. The need for corporate governance arises because of the separation of management and ownership in modern Corporation. In practice, the interest of those who have effective control over a firm can differ from those interests of the suppliers of external finance. The principal-agent problem is reflected in management pursuing activities which may be detrimental to the interest of the shareholders and this problem can be mitigated through the protections derived from good corporate governance. 0Donovan (2003) defines corporate governance as an internal mechanism encompassing processes, policies and people who works for the benefit of stakeholders and shareholders by coordinating sound management practices with integrity and business knowledge which will ultimately lead to a healthy board structure and hence creating a sound corporate structure within the organisation. ODonovan (2003) put forward that a firm implementing good corporate governance practices this can influence its share price as well as the amount of cost required in raising capital determined various external market forces, the financial markets, legislations and global environment. External forces are beyond the control of the board and the board find its difficult to handle external pressures and forces. Corporate governance is now being enthralled in various legislations for the sake of transparency from the part of corporate in order to avoid corporate malpractices. Taking a finance point of view, Shleifer and Vishny (1997) define corporate governance as dealing with the various ways in which finance provider assure themselves of getting an appropriate rate of return on their respective amount of investment. Kakabadse, Kakabadse and Kouzmin (2001) put forward that following on a survey which reads Board Governance and Company Performance: Any Correlations?, carried out by McKinsey and Company who referred to Agrawal et al., (1996), it was clearly noticed that investors willing to pursue a growth strategy and subsequently invested in low valued or table companies were willing to pay for good governance. These investors assumed that a company with good corporate governance will have a better financial performance over a time lag and/or that good corporate governance can ultimately reduce the risks associated and attract further investments. Kakabadse, Kakabadse and Kouzmin (2001) further put forward that though there are substantial research that creates the relationship between corporate governance to company performance, there are equally a growing range of results with different interpretations. The wide range of results can be explained because of the variability of different companies concerning their board structures, attitude towards risk, NEDs participation and others. According to Kakabadse, Kakabadse and Kouzmin (2001), there have been studies done by Zahra and Pearce (1989), Jonnegard and Svensson (1995) and Maassen (1999) based on the integrative models of board involvement, incorporating different theoretical perspectives and various board attributes, suggesting that corporate governance has, at least, an indirect effect on company performance. Taking again a finance point of view, Mathiesen (2002) put forwards that corporate governance is an important field in economics that tries to investigate about how to secure a well developed board management and firm management by using incentive internal mechanisms and legislation. This is basically restrained to the issue of improving financial performance, for example how corporate owners can motivate corporate managers to increase the competitiveness of the firm. Taking an integrated approach of the issue, Sir Adrian Cadbury documents that corporate governance is concerned with holding the balance between economic and social goals and between individual and communal goals. The aim is to align as nearly as possible the interests of individuals, corporations and society. It also encompasses the setting up of an appropriate lawful structure, economical and institutional environment that allows companies to thrive as institutions for enhancing corporate competitiveness. Advancing long term shareholder value, and maximising human-centred development while remaining conscious of other responsibilities to stakeholders, the environment and the society in general. Good Corporate Governance Good corporate governance entails the pursuit of objectives by the board and management that represent the interests of a company and its shareholders including effective monitoring and efficient use of resources. It is influenced by a number of factors, primarily the nature of the overall institutional and legal framework that has been established by governments to effect such good governance. Good Corporate Governance is important at different levels. At the company level, well governed companies tend to have better and cheaper access to capital and tend to outperform their poorly governed peers over the long term. Shleifer and Vishny (1997) suggest that good corporate governance increases the efficiency of capital allocation within and across firms. It also reduces the cost of capital for issuers, helps to broaden access to capital, reduces vulnerability to crises, fosters savings provisions, and renders corruption more difficult. Likely, those companies that insist upon the highest standards of governance are aiming at reducing many of the risks inherent to an investment in an company. Black, Jang, and Kim (2003) supported in their in findings that companies, which actively promote robust corporate governance practices ultimately attract more investors who are willing to provide capital at a lower cost. More generally, well governed companies are better contributors to the national economy and society. They tend to be healthier companies that add more value to shareholders wealth, workers, communities and countries in contrast to poorly governed countries that may result in job losses, the loss of pensions, and even demoralize confidence in securities market. These good governance practices enable corporations to use their capital efficiently, maintain the confidence of investors and attract more patient long term capital. In accordance with OECD (1999) corporate governance enhances strategic focus, builds market confidence and community support, and is an important source of corporate competitive advantage. Hence, the state of corporate governance in an economy is likely to be connected with the state of economic and political governance of that given country. Kaufmann (2003) argues that poor governance of financial institutions increases the liabilities of the financial system. They have distorting effect on public institution, deter foreign direct investment and can lead to future financial crisis. Theories relevant to corporate governance The theories of corporate governance comprise of: Shareholding Perspectives Stakeholding Perspectives Stewardship theory Shareholding Perspectives There are two main theories that explain the shareholder approach governance: The Separation of ownership and control- origin of the Agency theory The myopic market model The Separation of ownership and control- origin of the Agency theory Berle Means (1932) described a fundamental agency problem in modern firms where there is a separation of ownership and control. Jensen Meckling (1976) further define agency relationship and identify agency costs. Agency relationship is defined when a principal appoints an agent to undertake a specific task. The relationship is recognised under the law of agency. There is an inherent conflict of interest between managers and shareholders. If managers are to act in the best interest of owners, the managers must be monitored and rewarded with appropriate incentives. Deegan (2000) refers to the agency relationship to the delegation of decision making from the principal to the agent or managers. The conflict of interests between managers or controlling shareholder, outside or minority shareholder refer to the tendency that the former may extract perquisites (or perks) out of a firms resources and be less interested to pursue new profitable ventures that will increase shareholders wealth. This leads to potential loss in efficiency of generating profits as managers. Act in their self interests. Therefore, the share price that shareholders (principal) pay often reflects such agency costs. To increase firm value, one must therefore reduce agency costs. This is one way to view the linkage between corporate governance and corporate competitiveness therefore reduce agency costs. This is one way to view the linkage between corporate governance and corporate competitiveness by improving corporate financial and overall performance. Letza, Kirkbride, Sun and Smallman (2008) mentioned that two problem occurring out of the agency theory are that it is very difficult to monitor what the agent is doing and the second problem is that the principal and the agent may share different actions because of the different attitudes to risk horizons. Myopic Market Model Letza, Kirkbride, Sun and Smallman (2008) made reference to the work of Hayes and Abernathy (1980), which shared a common view with the principal agent model and that corporations should serve the shareholders interests only, but criticises that the Anglo-American model of corporate governance because of competitive myopia and its consequent pre occupation with short term gains in return, profit and stock price. The Myopic model argues that what is wrong with corporate governance is that the system encourages managers to focus on short term performance by sacrificing long term value and corporate competitiveness of the corporation. Financial markets often force managers to behave in a divergent way from the maximisation of long term wealth for shareholders. It was further argued that the myopic market model contends that corporate governance reform should provide an environment in which shareholders and managers are encouraged to share long term performance horizons. Stakeholding Perspectives Stakeholder model Abuse of Executive Power Model Stakeholder Model The firm is not a standalone entity. It has stakeholders to which it is accountable and which in turn work towards its prosperity. The interdependence between a firm and its strategic shareholders is recognized by Clarkson (1994), who forwarded the idea that the firm operates on a larger environment including the legal and market structure. The main aim of the firm is to create added value wealth for its stakeholders by converting their involvement into final goods and services. Letza, Kirkbridge, Sun and Smallman (2008) in Freeman (1984) argued that the aim of corporate governance is to maximise wealth creation of the corporation as a whole by taking into account the interests of various groups in the society to which the corporation has an interest either direct or indirect. The efficiency of this stakeholder approach draws on Japan and Germany as examples of successful industrial societies in which stakeholders are given importance while setting corporate goals so as to maximise the interests of the various groups of stakeholders. The main components proponents of the stakeholder theory for the provision of voice and ownership-like incentives to strategic stakeholders that are intended to share the control of the firm between investors and stakeholders through a compound board so as to reduce conflicts of interest and agency costs. The Abuse of Executive Power Model Letza, Kirkbridge, Sun and Smallman (2008) referred to Hutton (1995) and mentioned that the current American corporate governance procedures are in the hands of senior management who may abuse it to serve their own interest instead of shareholders and stakeholders. It was put forward that in Keasey et al., (1997) referred by Letza, Kirkbridge, Sun and Smallman (2008) as Incentive Mechanisms such as share options are a means to reduce corporate malpractices. That is to align more closely the interests of the managers and the shareholders through payment to managers partly with cash and share options. This gives the managers a powerful incentive to act in the interests of the company by maximising shareholder value and stakeholding value. However some managers may indulge in some accounting irregularities in order to increase the value of their share potions. Stewardship Theory The stakeholder theory was put forward by Donalsdon (1990), a management scholar. In this model, managers are good stewards of the corporations and diligently work to attain high levels of corporate profit and shareholders returns (Donaldson Davis, 1994). The authors argue that managers are inspired by non economic factors and given the needs of managers for responsible, self directed work, organisations may be better served to free managers from subservience to NED dominated board. However, supporters of the stewardship model are basically those individuals who contribute their own funds and other resources to non profit organisations to become a director. It is interesting to note that both agency theory and the stewardship theories are contradictory theories, in the sense that the former views the manager as the self seeking agent whereas the latter views the manager as the god steward. Why has Corporate Governance become so prominent today? The East Asian Crisis of 1997 severely affected foreign capital after property assets collapsed The second event was in 2001-2002which saw the collapse of two big corporations namely Enron and WorldCom and the ensuing scandals and collapses like Arthur Andersen, Global Crossing and Tyco. Becht et al., (2002) documents that the world wide wave of privatization of the past two decades, the pension reform and the growth of private savings, the takeover wave of the 1980s, the deregulation and integration of capital markets and recent corporate scandals have lead to corporate governance gaining momentum. Yoshikawa Phan (2001) note intensifying global competition and rapid technological changes force firms to focus on maximising asset efficiency and shareholder value if they want to access funds to fuel growth opportunities. These technological advances reduce transaction costs and information research costs rendering capital markets more accessible to investors. This has fuelled global competition between capital markets and evolution of corporate governance around the world. Benefits of good corporate governance Earnings confidence of shareholders Firstly when good corporate governance is fully implemented, it ensures that large corporations are well run institutions that have earned the confidence of investors and lenders. Donaldson (2003) found good corporate governance is important for increasing investor confidence and market liquidity. This process prevents corruption and management malpractices, while promoting fundamental values of a free market economy in a democratic society (CIPE, 2002). However, CC Okeahalam et al (2003) asserted that countries that fail to establish acceptable standards of transparency and governance within bounds of good law will lose their international repute and will find increasingly difficult to attract foreign and institutional investment. If a company adopts and implement good corporate governance practices, shareholders are retained and new investors are attracted. Institutional investors have indicated willingness to pay a premium for the shares of a well governed company. Around the world, price earnings ratio are higher among companies with good disclosure. Hence good corporate governance is necessary in order to: Create competitive and efficient companies and business enterprises Attract both local and foreign investors guarantee them secure investment efficiently managed, within a transparent and accountable purposes. Enhance the accountability and performance of those entrusted to mange corporations. Growth Effect Growth is likely to be highest when capital is allocated to those financial institutions that use it optimally. A strong system of corporate governance equips investors with the information and confidence necessary for them to lend funds directly to companies. This applies equally to foreigners, who will become more willing to provide their savings to the country in particular to the corporate sector. Likewise, Mervyn King, the governance guru, has observed that foreign capital literally flows to places that exude a perception of good governance. As such, investment should increase, thereby boosting productivity and growth across the economy. In these different ways, good corporate governance can lead to higher economic growth. Stability effect In addition to the growth effect, strong corporate governance can reduce the likelihood of a domestic financial crisis, in which investors lose confidence in the assets which they own. On a broader view, recent research has found a relationship between the state of corporate governance in an economy and the severity of the crises that it suffers. Meesook et al., (2001). Nonetheless, this link should not be over emphasizes. Some countries with good corporate governance have had crises. Other countries with poor corporate governance have avoided them. In his recent excellent survey of the state of corporate governance in India, Omkar Goswani argues that a transparent and well governed company makes good business sense. Economic development effect Corporate Governance has implications for economic development especially in helping to increase the flow of financial capital to firms in developing firms. Without efficient companies or business enterprise, a country will not create wealth or employment. Consequently, without investment, companies will stagnate and collapse. If business enterprises do not prosper, there will be no economic development; no employment, no taxes paid and invariably the country will not develop. As such, developing countries in particular, need well governed and managed business enterprises that can attract investments, create jobs and wealth and remain viable, sustainable and competitive in the global market place. Moreover, results from an extensive study of corporate governance in emerging markets by CSLA Global Emerging Markets, released in April 2001 suggest good integrity and responsiveness to shareholders, competitive advantage and performance. Good corporate governance therefore becomes a prerequisite for national economic development and to operate competitively in a globalised world. Determinants of good corporate governance Discipline in modern corporations in induced by both internal and external factors. The Internal Drivers Internally, effective governance systems are reflected in a set of relationships among the key players in a corporation. Typically, these would be reflected in the companies act, auditing regulations of the company, securities laws and listing requirements of the Stock Exchanges. Internal arrangements differ accordingly to the ownership structure of the company. For a publicly owned company with dispersed ownership, the manner of selection board members is important. The Role of the Board of directors In simpler terms, a board is the link between shareholders and the company. As such, all companies should be headed by an effective board which can lead and control the company. A companys board of directors prepares financial statements reflecting a true and fair view of the operations of the company during the financial year and takes steps to safeguard assets of the company to prevent and detect fraud. Fama Jensen (1983) view the board as the apex of internal decision control systems of organisations. Functions of boards The act of providing counsel and advice to management is a key element of the boards function. Chatterjee and Harrison (2002) found that board of directors in and of itself can be a valuable resource to the firm. Similarly the Report on Corporate Governance for Mauritius (2003) stipulates that it is the board responsibility to provide effective corporate governance, performance and control affairs of the company. Size of the Board of Directors The board should have an appropriate balance of executives, non executives and independent directors. It is essential for the protection of shareholders interest that the board has some directors who are independent from the company and from any dominant shareholder. Having independent directors on the board will normally increase the level of corporate governance as shareholders will have more confidence on the board. Botha (2001) documents independent director presents a broad spectrum of stakeholders and appears to contribute to the success of well performing boards. Regarding the size of the board, it may vary from industry to industry and corporation to corporation as in determining board size, directors should take into account the nature, size and complexity of the company as well as its stage of development. Large corporate usually have eight to sixteen members on their boards. Mak and Yuanto (2003) echo the above findings in firms listed in Singapore and Malaysia when they found that firm valuation is highest when board has five directors, a number considered relatively small in those markets. However, Faleye (2003) presents an interesting proposition. He argues that no one hat fits al and board leadership structure depends entirely on individual firm characteristics such as organisational complexity, availability of other controls over CEO authority, CEO reputation, and power. External Auditors Most listed companies sustain their own internal audit department but to check whether accounts have been prepared in a fair view, they appoint external auditors. The main objective of the external audit is to report on the financial statements prepared by the managers. The detection of fraud and errors are incidental to this main objective. The regulators reliance on external auditors is premised on the belief that the auditors are public spirited and will act on behalf of either the public or the state, and that they are independent of the management. To engender public confidence in the integrity of the external auditor, he must be skilful, careful, diligent, faithful and honest. Such an auditor bolsters the perception of corporate governance. Internal Control and Risk Management An internal control system comprises of control procedures and policies. Internal controls are devices that ensure, as far as possible the orderly and efficient conduct of business. Internal controls and risk management are closely linked because a companys system of internal control has a key role in management of risks that are significant to the fulfilment of its business objectives. Sound internal practices ensure risks are managed and avoided through control mechanism which identify risk, monitor and mitigate them. Communication and disclosure Transparency is believed to be the keystone of good governance. Access to information provides the basis of accountability, performance assessment and attainment of strategic objectives. Information should be prepared and disclosed in accordance with high quality standards of accoutring and financial and non financial disclosure. Thus, reports are encouraged to be transparent and to reflect accountability in order to disseminate timely and relevant information to users. (OECD Principles of Corporate Governance). The External Drivers: As noted earlier, the external drivers of good corporate governance are laws, rules and institutions that provide a competitive playing field and discipline the behaviour of insiders, managers and shareholders. It is found that experience in developed market economies indicates that the legal framework for competition policy, for enforcing shareholders rights, systems for accounting and auditing, well regulated financial system, the bankruptcy system and the market for corporate control are among the institutions that discipline corporations. There is now increasingly momentum internationally towards implementing more laws and government regulations that impose obligations on companies, directors and officers to adopt, implement and comply with good corporate governance. Consequently, failure to do so may lead to legal and criminal sanctions being imposed on the company, its directors and officers. Corporate Governance and Competitiveness Governance systems of countries are accruing in importance presently because of the nature of globalised economy which corporations have to operate in. Hence, supporting globalization needs continuous improvements in information technology and related networks. Coupled with liberalization of financial markets, this is bringing radical changes in investors patterns which made a movement of funds from highly volatile financial market in different jurisdictions. With the erosion of barriers to investment, corporations have to compete for funds and for customers. Consequently, in order to survive in a competitive environment, business enterprises have to restructure their organisations and it is argued that the key to success in this new global configuration. Abiding to codes of good corporate practices will lead to corporations to operate on a longer term and survive as it has been found in the past that many writers have associated corporate governance with corporate performance. From the brief literature on corporate governance, it is seen that the effectiveness of corporate governance had been mainly gauged by performance measures in past studies. However such measures alone cannot fully reflect a companys competitiveness. Corporate competitiveness incorporates on the basis of the studies of Buckley et al. (1998), a firms potential and process of competitive advantage ability to sustain performance such as market share and growth, employment and rewarding of its factors. Likely, as the economic environment becomes competitive, Allen and Gale (2000) come across firms which find themselves under greater pressure to eliminate inefficient governance systems and to provide better protection to investors. As a result, economies characterised by high level of competition should also enjoy a better corporate governance system and higher investor protection. Although international guidelines argue that explicitly or implicitly that good governance practices is associated with corporate competitiveness, theoretical and empirical studies of corporate governance practices and their effects have not provided uniform or conclusive evidence to the fact but instead most studies had been carried out on the relationship of corporate governance and financial performance. During the last decades, most theoretical studies have produced a series of conceptual models explaining the causal relationship between corporate governance and corporate performance. The Empirical Studies of the relationship between corporate governance and corporate competitiveness. The findings of the past studies have found mixed results. The past studies have been classified in parts namely: Board Structure and firm performance Ownership and Control mechanisms Social responsibility and firm performance Many researchers have come to different conclusions. The findings are divided into positive and negative results. Board Structure and firm performance Agrawal and Knoeber (1996) found that more outsiders on the board are negatively related to performance, one rationale was that the boards are expanded for political reasons to include politicians and environmental activists or consumer representatives and they either reduced firm performance or proxied for the underlying political constraints leading to their seat levels. Bhagat and Black (2002) found out from their survey that there is no convincing evidence whether increasing board independence would improve firm performance board independence would improve firm performance. They found no linkage between the proportion of outsiders directors and Tobins Q, return on assets, asset turnover and stock returns. Ownership Concentration Gulger (1999) did a survey by studying the US and UK firms and come to the conclusion that owner controlled firms with a single block of equality exceeding 5% or 10% significantly outperformed manager controlled firms. On the other hand, Agrawal and Knoeber (1996) found no significant relationship between performance and stockholders of block-holders. Social Responsibility and firm performance Veerchoor (1998) found that 26.8% of 500 US corporations with a commitment to ethical behaviour had a higher overall financial performance that those who did not assume explicit undertakings. Daily et al (1997) found in their of 13 activist funds and their holdings in 197 large companies showed that activism had no appreciable effect on the firm performance and stock prices. Gompers, Ishii, and Metrick (2003) shows that companies with strong shareholder rights yielded annual returns that were 8.5% greater than those with weak rights. The more democratic firms enjoyed higher valuations, higher profits, higher sales growth and lower capital expenditures and in one word they are competitive. Empirical Evidence that Good Corporate Governance is at the heart of investment decisions: McKinseys Global Investor Survey Opinion (2002) McKinseys Global Investor Survey Opinion (2002) found that more than 80% of the more than 200 global institutional investors, together representing more than USD 3.25 trillion in assets, indicated a willingness to pay a premium for the shares of a well governed company over a one considered poorly governed but with a comparable financial record. The size of the premium varied by markets from 11% for Canadian companies to around 40% for less strict regulatory regimes like Egypt, and Russia and 30% in Eastern Europe and Africa. In its survey McKinsey Co., found that corporate governance is still at the heart of investment decisions. That is investors still put corporate governance at par with financial indicators when evaluating investment decisions and an overwhelming majority if investors are prepared to pay a premium for companies exhibiting high governance standards. Well governed companies may benefit from a lower cost of capital The report put forward that there are a number of other research that sought to explain the relationship between concerning the perception of the quality of companies to superior share price. The McKinseys survey was opinion based hence the finding is limitary. Hermes Pensions Management Ltd (2004) Deutsche Bank over several years carried out various studies linking corporate governance and financial performance over various markets. According to the Hermes Pensions Management Ltd (2004), Deutsche Bank UK research is based on an assessment of corporate governance practices of the 350 FTSE companies at the end of 200 and 2003 using 50 corporate indexes. It found a direct relationship between share price of the companies and their corporate governance performance. Over the three years of study, the top 10% of the companies in terms of corporate governance practices outperformed those in the bottom by 10% to 25%. Following this study, Deutsche Bank ranked these various companies accordingly to their corporate governance indexes. Deutsche Bank research showed that there was a positive relationship between corporate governance standards and their ROE. The top 20% companies (average 2002 ROE of 15.9%) which were more that the bottom 20% (average 2002 ROE of 1.5%). However this resear ch failed to establish a clear link between qualities of corporate governance and investors current market valuations, measured by the P/E and P/CF as opposed to the historic share price performance. Prof. Tong Lu (2006) Report (2006) Prof. Tong Lu (2006) of the Chinese Centre for Corporate Centre for Corporate Governance and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences carried out researches on the assessment of corporate governance practices on best 100 Chinese listed companies. Corporate governance assessment system must realise the basic principles of good corporate governance which includes fairness, accountability, openness and transparency. The study showed various observations: Overall assessment for the top 100 Chinese listed companies showed that more improvement in corporate governance is needed in form rather than in substance; improvement originated from the demand for compliance is greater than that originated from that driven by the market. Compared with 2005, the standard of Chinese Corporate Governance has generally improved in 2006, but the pace of improvement is minimal. Overall standard has increased by 4.25% measuring by the scores in our combined assessment. It has been found that there is a need to better emphasised on compliance and information disclosure and transparency by listed companies. The score in responsibilities of board of directors is higher than that scored in roles of stakeholders and shareholders rights, in the year 2005. In 2005, there is no significant difference between the combined corporate governance index scores of Shanghai-Shenzhen listed companies and Hong Kong listed companies; and there are improvements as compared with th 2005 data. Summary. The various theories allow us to understand that good governance practices generate goodwill, investor protection and confidence. Now, there is even more reason for them to improve their governance practices. Numerous recent studies emanating from academic circles show that good corporate governance increases valuations and boosts bottom line. Likewise, various studies have shown the link between corporate governance performance and share price performance. However these various researches have been based on mostly perceptions and opinions and the results obtained through the assessment of corporate governance practices have been interpreted differently though the basis the techniques and basis of evaluation are the same. Chapter 3 Corporate Governance in Mauritius Corporate governance issues are attracting worldwide interests. It is being actively involved and promoted in every sphere of life whether politics, business, social and environmental whereby all these issues are under good governance banner. It was necessary for the government to take certain steps to enhance its institutions and governance practices to be able to reinstate investors confidence and improve business climate. Good governance is a means of achieving sustainable economic and social objectives, accountability, transparency, responsibility, fair treatment, meritocracy, management disciplines and fight against corruption. How will the Corporate Governance help Mauritius? Globalisation and liberalizations of economics have presented challenges an opportunities for Mauritius particularly its production structures. The need to improve the governance is critical for enhancing productivity, competitiveness and self dependency to play an essential role in issues of international, financial and economic policy. The re-engineering of entities will improve the investment climate and raise stakeholders confidence in the corporations. Corporate Governance encourages long term investment flows by building market confidence and for those companies dealing on the international scene, corporate governance is even more essential. A lack of good corporate governance in a market will lead to a situation whereby capital will leave that market with the click of mouse and then capital will flow elsewhere. Hence, investors will determine which companies and which markets full stand the test of time and endure weight of greater competition. In 2001, new measures were introduced to comply with the codes of best practices worldwide and included: New Companies Act Introduction of IAS Introduction of new listing rules for companies on the SEM Ltd Setting up a national committee on Corporate governance Report on corporate governance as per world Bank Reports on Standards and codes in respect of Auditing, Accounting, Insolvency and Rights of creditors. Ah-Hen (2004) argued that good corporate governance plays a pivotal role in the economy and is a solution for, weak and legal regulatory systems, poor banking regulation and practices, inconsistent accounting and audit standards and unregulated capital markets. Likewise Ah-Hen (2004) mentioned about ineffective oversight by corporate boards. The Report on the Observance of Standards and Codes (ROSC) Mauritius underwent a Corporate Governance Country Assessment program, the results of which were published in October 2002. This was a joint initiative of the World Bank and the IMF. The report was based on the assessment of the corporate governance practices of listed companies in Mauritius. The assessment provided a benchmark against OECD principles applicable to the state of corporate governance in Mauritius, that is, to what extent the OECD principles were observed in the quoted firms. Accordingly, the strengths and shortcomings in the corporate governance structure were reviewed and appropriate policy recommendations made. Some of the board recommendations were t: Establish basic Shareholders rights Address stakeholder issues Improve information disclosure Better define the role and power of the supervisory and management board The Code of Corporate Governance for Mauritius (2003) The report on corporate governance for Mauritius was produced by the joint effort of the National Committee on Corporate Governance, Mervyn King who provided advice and guidance and FIRST INITIATIVE, an organisation supporting corporate governance programmes worldwide provided the required funding. The code takes on a broad approach and develops guidelines concerning the main provisions that are Section 1 Compliance and Enforcement Section 2- Board and Directors Board Committees Role and Function of the Company Secretary Risk Management, Internal Control and Internal Audit Auditing and Accounting Integrated Sustainability Reporting Communication and Disclosure Relationship with Shareowners According to Section 1.1, the Code shall apply to companies listed on the official list of the Stock Exchange of Mauritius, banks and non- banking financial institutions, large public companies, state owned enterprises and large private companies. Compliance with the code is on a comply or explain basis where companied will acknowledge their compliance with the provisions or state their reasons for non compliance in their annual reports.